[StBernard] Ground breaking at Kenilworth Park and Gauthier Gym held Friday

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard held ground breaking ceremony Friday 

at Kenilworth Park and Gauthier Gym in Poydras 

Park and gym undergoing about $2.5 million in construction 

St. Bernard Parish President Craig P. Taffaro Jr. and Parish Council members
held a ground breaking Friday at the site of Kenilworth Park and Gauthier
Gym in Poydras where work has started on complete reconstruction of the ball
park and the adjacent new gym.

The work financed by FEMA and some insurance proceeds at Kenilworth and
Gauthier should cost about $2.5 million. 

 

Picou-Fradella Construction has the contract to rebuild Kenilworth, which
will include new four baseball fields, new dugouts and back stops and new
lighting and fencing. The park, which should be finished by May, also will
be used as a football practice facility.

 

T-MAC Construction will build the gym that is completely new construction
because the flooded gym was demolished. The new gym lobby will house the
concession stand and restrooms for the gym and the outdoor fields.

The gym should be completed by August and will be used by the School Board
during the day and by the Parish Recreation Department in the evenings and
on weekends. 

School Board Superintendent Doris Voitier said she and the School Board
members have been looking forward to having the gym completed so it can be
used by the students at Gauthier Elementary. The school reopened in the fall
2007 and houses 450 students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. 

Meyer Engineers designed both the park and the gym, and CDM is the program
manager in charge of oversight of all FEMA permanent repairs and replacement
of buildings and infrastructure on behalf of the parish. Gil Carlin is the
project manager in public works for the project, and Diana Goin is the
resident inspector.

For more information about the Recovery and Growth of St. Bernard Parish,
please visit our website at www.sbpg.net.

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